Thanks guys...........I think it's a "nice little car" myself, and sw you can stop buy any time and drive it.
Octavious you can stop by and drive it also...if you don't feel like waiting before getting to Az stop in your local dealer and look over a EX and go for a drive.

 

It is interesting to see just how far the Kia has come from what essentially was a beer can technology entry level car. And during that same time interval how far GM has fallen while trying to pass off Beer Can Technology entry level cars as upgrades while closing factories to maintain profitability.

 

Unc I have no idea what GM cars you've been looking at. If you look at the Cruze for example you'd find it to be one of the nicest compact cars in it's segment.

 

I feel the same. The CRUZE is a real nice car and if it was sporting the 2.5L ecotec I would have bought it in a (pardon the pun) heartbeat. The Chevy Cobalt was a good little car, even the Cavalier was ok once it got the ecotec engine line.

Now that you drove it sw2......what do ya think?

 

The Colbalt was a terrific little car and had some surprising variations. The Cavalier? Was not even in the same genera. Either it or that sorry excuse for a car the Pontiac Sunbird was. Or frankly any of the other variations of the badge engineered packages based on it. While my automotive purchases over the years represent pretty much what was available at the time vs the money I had to spend. GM as a whole has pretty much built some truly sorry automobiles. Which in part is why the Saturn has been in my possession as long as it has. Purchased as a 2 year old used car it was a far better buy than when it was new. Saturn pricing practice made them over priced in comparison to the competition when new. And was and still continues to be something more enjoyable to own than the alternatives. And personally by in large a significant number of GM cars are just flat Homely and many of the rest that are in the configuration they are offered? I have zero interest in.

 

The Cobalt was the ION clone ........ nice car but steel skin. The Cavalier was still the Cavalier but at least the later ones had a good powertrain. The CRUZE damn nice but way under powered. So I got the Forte EX with it's standard 2.0L with 173hp hauling 2,837lbs.
Have yet to find any quirks I dislike about the car...we shall see if anything shows up.


Pictures in this post via a KODAK Z981

 

Again, my exposure to some of these models were based on need at the time and what was offered at a price.
Cobalts in General were rental cars as needed. Pretty much a non-descript 2 or 4 door sedan that did not have much in it's decor that actually defined what the brand was nor did I really care. They were the cheapest thing available to rent. What came as a surprise was once traffic cleared and the road ahead was long I generally discovered they drove well, were adaptable to all road conditions and speed and generally gave every indication that fuel mileage was phenomenal. Ion's I never saw as rental cars nor did I personally have any desire to drive or own one based no more than on appearance which in my minds eye ranged some where between homely and butt ugly.
To me that time frame would have been the early 2000's some where and I was not particularly interested in purchasing a new car so what ever was in the Saturn Show Rooms at the time were what I saw. And what I saw did not appeal to me enough to want one.
I might have at one time traded the S Saturn coupe for a new one had there been a new coupe but the only thing available was the 3 door model which at the time held no appeal to me at all and still doesn't.
The plastic body panels were not a particular marketing strategy that held much appeal to me anyway. I had long since moved out of the rust belt and liveed where the direct sun light, UV and heat held it's toll on plastic pieces. That also let me enjoy the fact that the drive train was not rusted together.
GM during that interval seemed to wander around like a rudderless ship manufacturing stuff that held little or no cosmetic appear and a complete lack of affordable drive trains that represented performance.
Not I could be wrong, but that is my impression.
Hyundai which entered the market place with a truly lousy driving offering but cheap which had it's own appeal and driving impression basically ignored as there were many poor driving cars that were it's direct competition, marketed as an appliance rather than an emotion, it was reliable and sold. And continuing offerings continued to improve.
A feature generally provided by Detroit, but Detroit by that time had pretty much lost it's way with multiple look-a-like offerings competing with them selves. Kia which I think is a sister company or at least partially owned by Hyundai both of which are from Korea invested in model changes that were appealing, well designed and marketed well and ended up being the 4th largest selling outfit. After Toyota and GM? Disappeared in the processes.
Why or how? It is not my expertise to be able to give a good short answer as to how that happened, but corporate miss-management is as good as an excuse as any. The assumption of multiple look-a-like assembled offerings based on "Platforms" which give little differences between brand names but are cheap to build and what is turning out to be statistically hard to maintain has to be at least part of the reason.
My personal needs for automobiles have changed over the years. My S series Saturn has proven to be a good car and one that is enjoyable with quirks that will ultimately lead to disposing of it due to lack of parts. However it was never improved upon, just replaced. Nothing that would lead to a Brand following. A marketing ploy that has also lead to the disposition of Pontiac and Oldsmobile and more than a few others. To me I just find it interesting that GM a leader in automotive design and marketing has fallen so far out of public favor while something no one ever heard of has replaced it, using for all practical purposes, philosophies developed by GM and then discarded.

 

Overall GM sales are up. Caddy's sale are highest in 40 years. GM has been doing a good job, better than a long time. They just don't offer an econocar with the hp I want so I bought the KIA.

 

That is a nice driver. A load of equipment, but I would have gotten the 17's. I do like the 17inch wheels they offer.
I found one thing I DO NOT like about it. That horn sucks like a gay hairdresser from New York City.

 

That horn sucks like a gay hairdresser from New York City

Hey that was my line ..... you stole it.